The number of endometriosis patients rose sharply in recent years due to late marriage and childbirths, stress and irregular lifestyles, with most of those affected in their 30s and 40s, data showed Tuesday.
The number of those who were diagnosed as endometriosis patients by CHA Gangnam Medical Center in southern Seoul rose to 15,968 in 2016 from 3,184 in 2009, according to the hospital records.
An undated file photo of an endometriosis patient surgery at a Seoul hospital. (Yonhap)
Out of the 2017 total, those in their 30s accounted for 48.3 percent of the total, trailed by those in their 40s at 36.9 percent.
The comparable figures for those in their 20s, 50s, 60s and teens were 10.8 percent, 6.3 percent, 0.4 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively.
The Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service also put the number of endometriosis patients at 94,857 in 2015, up from 53,000 in 2008.
Experts advised women to have regular medical checkups for the condition, which is hard to detect because pelvic pain usually comes together with cramps.
Pelvic pain is the typical symptom of endometriosis, together with infertility, as the disease involves tissues that normally grow inside the uterus growing outside it.
Medical experts said relieving stress and maintaining a healthy weight through regular exercises will help reduce endometriosis in women. (Yonhap)